Forrest General Hospital Hospice – 30 Years of Making Moments Matter
HATTIESBURG, Miss. – (April 9, 2024) As spring blooms and the landscape reawakens, Forrest General Hospital’s Hospice program observes its 30th anniversary. The Hospice program was established on April 9, 1994, and for three decades has provided expertise, compassion, and comfort as the staff honors a person’s life with dignity and grace.
Hospice is a special way of caring for the terminally ill and their caregivers/loved ones, and focuses on the whole person and not the illness or disease. Hospice cares for the patient's physical, emotional, social, and spiritual needs, as well as the needs of the family. The primary goal of hospice care is to promote comfort, including alleviation of pain and other distressing symptoms. The special needs of a hospice patient require individualized attention from the hospice team which consists of an experienced interdisciplinary team of medical professionals who possess the knowledge and ability to provide superior care in any situation.
Respecting the decisions of the patient and caregiver is the center of the hospice philosophy. While hospice copes with end of life, it’s about living every moment fully and celebrating life.
While most hospice services are provided in the home with family members taking the lead role as primary caregivers, Forrest General Hospital’s Hospice team members visit as needed and are also available for emergencies 24 hours a day, seven days a week, according to Home Hospice Director, Helen “Cissy” Strickland, RN, BSN.
“While our job as nurses is to take care of the health of patients and meet and take care of their medical needs, we serve a greater purpose, as well,” said Strickland. “It takes an entire team of people to take care of our patients. This is really why we got into nursing to begin with.”
Home hospice nurses, as well as a hospice aide, visit the home one to three days a week or more, depending on the need. A social worker also visits during the assessment period and on an as-needed basis.
“A hospice aide takes care of things such as bathing the patient, changing the bedsheets, and giving the patient the feeling of dignity after being cleaned, because that is something that is meaningful and makes them feel better,” said Strickland.
Pamela Knight is a hospice aide who has been member of the team for 30 years. She also provides exercise for patients, reads to them, or whatever they need her to do. “You have to be a very special person to work with hospice. You have your ups and down. You cry with the family and are there for them and do the best you can. Sometimes I’m a counselor and other times I’m a chaplain. And sometimes I become a family member.”
Social workers go out to help with any needs family members might have, and provide support. “As a family, they are trying to wrap their head around the fact they have been given a terminal diagnosis, and are looking at end-of-life care,” said Andi Butler, LMSW. “Where we come in is to help them process what is happening in their lives as they face a terminal illness.” They also work with the hospice team to help them assess ways to aid the caregiver in handling what lies in front of them.
Chaplains, who go to the home, meet with families, and patients for any spiritual guidance and support they need. “This is a really tense part of life and sometimes people have spiritual needs at the end,” said Strickland.
The same nurses remain with the family for the duration of care. According to Strickland, continuity of care is very important as the family gets to know that nurse, and he or she begins to become part of that family. “Here, at Forrest General, we treat everybody like they are our own family,” said Strickland. “I would expect nothing less if you were my mom’s nurse and coming to her house to take care of her. We want to be part of their family and help them grieve.”
Strickland, a nurse for 31 years, said while she’s done many things during her time as a nurse, hospice is, by far, the most rewarding thing she’s ever done. “It fulfills a need in me. While nothing makes it easier when your loved one dies, I have helped someone in the most difficult time of their entire life. A lot of our job is education, as well, because we are also going to educate these families about how to take care of their patients, but also alert them to the signs and symptoms they are going to see as their loved one starts to decline. It doesn’t make it easier, but makes it more tolerable.”
The number of Forrest General Hospital Home Hospice patients being cared for across a 20-county area at any given time ranges between 90 and 100. All home hospice nurses work out of offices at Asbury Hospice House, but there is also a hospice office in Picayune.
For many, with limited loved ones to care for them, in-house hospice care is needed.
The patient’s personal physician refers the patient to hospice and participates with the hospice team in prescribing a plan of care, whether that be in a home or a facility such as Asbury Hospice House or a nursing home.
Forrest Health is fortunate to have Asbury Hospice House as part of the hospice program. Asbury, located on South 40th Avenue in Hattiesburg, offers a home-like setting where staff can address the needs of each patient and their family. This inpatient facility provides a comforting atmosphere where families can gather and prepare in dignity. Asbury includes spacious patient rooms, a dining area, and kitchen facilities, a comfortable family room, a meditation room, and garden.
Forrest General Hospital’s Hospice offers a Bereavement Support Group that meets from 6-7 p.m., the first and third Tuesdays of each month in the Asbury Hospice House dining room. Meetings are open to anyone, not just hospice families.
“If we can bring patients just a little joy during this time, whether a little smile or something that takes their mind away from their pain or sorrow, it’s worth it,” said Strickland. “We would love to help answer any questions you may have regarding our Home Hospice program.” For more information, visit forrestgeneral.org/hospice.
